Parents, did you know?

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Students Must Attend School until They Graduate or Reach 18 Years of Age

The law has changed. In December 2006, new legislation increased the age for compulsory school attendance from sixteen to eighteen years of age, or until the student earns his or her secondary school diploma, whichever comes first.

One way that parents can help their children to succeed is to do everything possible to ensure their son or daughter attends school each day.

What can parents do to support their teen in regular school attendance?

• Skipping classes or whole days can become a very difficult habit to change. Therefore, prevention is important. For most parents, the first hint they receive that their teen has skipped a class or a whole school day is when they receive a personal or automatic telephone message from the school. Many parents fail to take effective action at this time because their son or daughter explains that the report from the school was in error or that they were only late for class but the attendance had already been sent down.
• If you receive a message from the school saying that your teen was absent, take it seriously. If the message was sent in error, you need to address the school's error. If your son or daughter was absent, and they deny that, you will not be able to have a meaningful conversation about their decision to skip school until you have the facts. Sometimes a phone call to the Attendance Secretary [(519)-728-2281] will provide the needed clarification.
• Some teens find it very difficult to resist the temptation to miss class to hang out with friends or to avoid a difficult classroom situation such as a test. If your son or daughter admits to missing school, you need to engage him/her in a calm discussion related to the issue. It is helpful to ask questions rather than to lecture. There is probably nothing you can say that your teen hasnŐt heard before. When you ask questions, your teen is required to think through his or her decision.
• You might want to consider limiting your son or daughter's part-time employment. Research has shown that adolescents working more than 10 hours a week are at a higher risk of quitting school.
• Studies have shown that moving from one secondary school to another increases the risk of not graduating. If the move of a family home can be delayed until your teen graduates, great! If your son or daughter is not getting along with their peers, work to resolve that conflict rather than change schools.
• Encourage your teen to be involved in extra-curricular activities or community-based activities that build on his/her personal strengths and interests. Positive self-esteem is usually associated with good attendance and success in school.
• Memory and concentration are known to deteriorate when children (and even adults!) are tired. Make sure that your child has plenty of sleep with a bedtime appropriate for your child's age. Experts suggest that 4-6 year olds require 11 hours of sleep in every 24 hour period. Older children require 9 to 10 hours per night.